CIAF has provided Girringun and the artists excellent exposure and provided a platform not only for displaying artwork but also as a place for advocacy.

Abe Muriata fields media questions at CIAF. He is standing in front of a large eel trap he created. Photo V Keenan GAAC.

Girramay Artist Abe Muriata participated in a raft of media interviews during CIAF on the subject of Fake Art Harms Culture.

This campaign spear-headed by the Indigenous Art Code is designed to make people aware that there is an overabundance of un-authentic Aboriginal product being sold under the guise of the genuine article.

“I’ve seen boomerangs that were made in Asia,” Abe Muriata said.

“Painted by someone who wasn’t an Aboriginal.

“Boomerangs like these follow a pattern, are generally mass produced and are essentially a picture to hang on the wall.

“They are fake and they are not cultural.

“But, if you look at a genuine traditional boomerang, the object, its patterns and drawings tell one or more stories.

“They are inherently cultural.

“But, somewhere along the line the story stopped and the picture took over.

“Something a bit like boomerangs that are made for the tourist market.

“The object has gone beyond the story.

“It has got bigger than all of us.

“In a way it was inevitable.

“While there may be some sort of controls we can put into place, all I suspect that we can do is ensure acknowledgement of ownership and origins and endeavour to seek some sort of compensation for Aboriginal people.”

The Girringun Aboriginal Art Centre is funded by the Arts Queensland Backing Indigenous Arts Fund and the Ministry of the Arts Indigenous Visual Arts Strategy.